Weaving Stories, Curating Memories

Gratitude List- May

My gratitude bucket for May is overflowing. May has been the best month of 2018 so far. I have been so happy and blessed last month that this gratitude post is going to be a long one. I really do not know where to begin with. Should I begin with my eBook Golden Rainbow or should I begin with my amazing trip to the Central Himalayas or should I begin with the amazing time that I spent with family and friends? I guess it will be better to go chronologically as they happened or else it might get overwhelming.

Let me begin with April when I was successfully able to complete my A-Z Challenge. All my posts were accepted by my readers with amazing love and warmth. The beautiful comments that I received from my readers and fellow bloggers will remain in my heart’s treasure chest forever. I cannot thank them enough in my lifetime. The collection from my A-Z series was later on published as an eBook called Golden Rainbow by Blogchatter in their Blogchatter EBook Carnival Season 3. Very soon the Kindle version would also be available. Stay tuned.

For the second consecutive year, TrinaLooksBack blog featured in the list of Indian Top Blogs. It is a great feeling to be on the same page with so many other renowned bloggers. I am really thankful and humbled.

I am grateful to my better half for helping me put together the manuscript for the eBook. I was traveling when I got the mail from Blogchatter to send the manuscript. I had no manuscript ready and I was neither carrying my laptop nor I had an internet connection in remote Sikkim. A distress call was made to the husband in Mumbai, who immediately tried his best to put together the manuscript. Thank God for these little blessings.

May began with a bang. On day one of May, my friend KN and her 9-year-old daughter joined me in Kolkata, where I was vacationing. I had kept their visit a secret to my son and the moment he saw them getting down from the cab, his face lit up with surprise, awe, and happiness. I can take birth a million times just to see that face again and again. From that day all four of us turned into perfect tourists in my hometown Kolkata. Since long going on a Mommy- Kiddie trip was on my bucket list. This year finally we could make it happen. A tour exclusively arranged and executed by the moms sans the Dads. Three cheers to women power!!! With KN, I explored Kolkata the way I have never done before. It was indeed great to see the hidden and unexplored beauty of the City Of Joy.

While taking a stroll in Kolkata Zoo my friend KN, expressed her desire to visit Shantiniketan. Immediately a call was made to my friend Dhee, who is a professor in Viswa Bharati University. He immediately arranged for our stay in the university guest house. Train tickets were booked (courtesy better half) and next day morning we were in blissful Shantiniketan. I have never been to Shantiniketan during summer and therefore had missed the beautiful plethora of colours that you can see during this season. I am thankful that I could visit Shantiniketan, once again. This is the place where I have some lovely memories with my friend Subha as well.

While in Shantiniketan, Dhee invited us for evening tea and treated us with some amazing home-baked cake and sandwiches. His home is a beautiful abode and I cannot resist sharing pictures of the same.

Dhee also arranged for me to attend an amazing Bengali Play called “Mayamridangam.” I watched a Bengali play after ages.

From Shantiniketan our next destination was Kurseong. I am thankful to my brothers-in-law Bidyut Da and Pijush for extending their help in making my journey smooth. In Kurseong we stayed in an amazing hotel called Cochrane Palace that was suggested by my fellow blogger Seema Mishra from Lonely Canopy. Thanks for the suggestion, Cochrane was indeed an out of the world experience. The kids just loved it.

From Kurseong we went to Darjeeling. This was my first visit to Darjeeling. It was on my bucket list since long and I felt glad to finally make it happen. We spent two amazing days in Darjeeling, enjoying breakfast at Keventers and dinner at Glenary’s. The hotel we stayed was a heritage one and we enjoyed every bit of our stay. In Darjeeling, my son also successfully did rock climbing at HMI. It was a proud moment for me to see him complete the climb.

Our next destination was Gangtok, my erstwhile hometown. It was an emotional moment for me to visit my old school and old house in Gangtok. The city has changed a lot. It was nostalgic to visit the old places that I used to frequent as a kid with my parents. We also went to Nathula and Tsomgo Lake. The kids enjoyed the snow a lot. It was for the first time that my son experienced snow. Being a practicing Buddhist, visiting Rumtek Monastery was a great spiritual pilgrimage for me. This is the only place where I truly find my spiritual solace.

Once I was back in Kolkata, hectic yet enjoyable gatherings with friends and cousins started. Met Gupto Kaku‘s daughter M after a long time. We also celebrated her birthday together amidst great fun and laughter. Met my school friends and laughed exactly the way we used to laugh in school. Met my cousins. In Kolkata almost every day I was getting an invitation either for lunch and dinner from friends and family. It was amazing. So many of them came over to my home also, so each day was passing in a jiffy.

I also watched two Bengali movies ‘Drishtikon‘ and ‘Haami‘. It was after ages that I watched a Bengali movie in the theatre.

This time I came back to Mumbai in a train. My Mumbai neighbour and her 4-year-old son accompanied me. It was an enjoyable train ride. The boys had their own share of fun while I could spend some time reading and reviewing a book.

It is nearly a week that I am back in Mumbai and already the fast pace of the city is catching up. I have not been blogging since April and it feels great to be back working. However, I am yet to start my yoga.

Kurseong was initially not in our itinerary but after reading your post I felt intrigued. The book ghost hunters of Kurseong also added to the mystery. While our stay in Cochrane we came to know that the place is Haunted..we were desperately waiting to meet a ghost but nothing came our way. I would write a detailed post on Kurseong soon.stay tuned.

Aha! You have had an action packed May! Congratulations for your ebook, Balaka and looking forward to the Kindle version too. Congrats are in order for the listing in Top Blogs too.
Sikkim and Kolkata through your camera and words is beautiful and is on our travel wish list for long. Wishing you a fabulous June 🙂

May has truly been an amazing month for you. So much to cherish, so much to celebrate! Many congratulations on the feature, Balaka. It’s really well deserved. 🙂

That being said, I loved reading about you playing tourist in your hometown. As it happens, this is on our wish-list too.

Ever since we moved to US about 9 years back, India trips were mostly meant for attending family events/ceremonies etc. However after our last trip, we had decided to add sightseeing to our list next time we visit India. And we plan to start with our home-town too, which btw happens to be Mumbai. 🙂

Busy busy busy. Glad that you had a lovely May escaping the heat of Mumbai…. Congratulations on your ebook and the best blog mentions. It’s always a great high to be publicly acknowledged isn’t it? Hope the rest of the year is just as fulfilling and looking forward to our meeting soon…..

A lovely round up of the month. Congratulations of the e book being published. Its a big step in the world of writing and blogging. Wishing you many many more such successes. Your travel sounds like so much of fun. Live these little pics and memories you share with us all.

Have I ever told you I am in complete awe of you for your audacity to travel far and wide and to travel frequently – alone or with the son or as a family. Audacious is the word which comes to my mind when I think of you and it is not just about your travels but the other bits of your life too. Even those bits which you may not have told me about through your posts but I can sense that. Congratulations on your eBook. I am yet to read it. Being a tourist in one’s own city must be great fun. I want to visit Sikkim once in my lifetime but it is not going to happen with husband for his various reasons. All the best for all your future travel plans and have an equally wonderful June.
I love the hills and all the photos of hills were my favourite, especially those with the teacups. Bas thoda sa doodh aur hota un chai main! 😀

My name Balaka (in Bengali) is the name of a migratory bird that flies from one part of the world to the other…I guess I am just living up to my name. I don’t know if I am audacious or not but definitely impulsive…dimaag mein kuch keeda ghus Gaya to woh tabhi karna hai…and due to this nature there have been Hits and misses (more misses) even though we never met you always send me positive vibes through your posts and comments and one day I would definitely want to sit with you over a cup of tea. A Milky masala tea for you and a Darjeeling black tea for me…

Wow. You had such an amazing month. Travelling with near and dear ones is really awesome. Enjoyed reading this post. Memories to cherish for a lifetime indeed. Beautiful pictures. Congratulations on your ebook and making it again to the top bloggers list. It’s amazing. I have so much to learn from you guys. Especially consistency in blogging.

Your pic posters are just delightful Balaka and bring out all the masti of your May joys – how wonderful it sounds that you had a ma-beta trip and that also to see your own hometown. I bet the joy to show him what something meant to you as a child and his reaction to it must be just priceless. I think this is one trip that is bound to stay etched on his memory.
Congrats on your ebook – your posts were just superb and I am so happy to note that they got their due credit. More power to you Girl!!

Yes Shalzmojo this was one memorable trip. I am sure he will remember this for long. Thanks for encouraging me throughout the Ato z challenge. I cannot thank you enough💓💓💓
Btw this comment had gone into the spam folder.

Many congratulations again, Balaka on your book I had enjoyed reading the stories during the A to Z Challenge. I am heading to Blogchatter to download your book. All the best and I’m sure your book will be well received. Glad to hear about your travel stories. Wishing you a fantastic June 🙂

What wonderful memories you created on your trip, Balaka! Glad you took this trip with your friend and kids, motivates others too to go on girls only trips! Liked the photo collages of different places!!